Birthday Benefits

by Emily

There are a lot of benefits to having a birthday. For one, you exist; yay! For another, free Starbucks.

I got a tall, iced, skinny caramel macchiato and loved every dollar-free sip of it.

When it’s your birthday your in-laws might drive up to take you and the husband out to lunch.

We chose Cheesecake Factory. I ate one of the avocado egg rolls, but they were mostly Adam’s reward for putting up with me.

For lunch I got the Fresh Vegetable Salad, my favorite salad of all time.

If you’ve read my how to post, you know that I ordered my salad with dressing on the side and a to-go box.

Once I packed half of my salad away for lunch tomorrow I dressed it with the spicy peanut cilantro vinaigrette I requested on the side.

Delicious. And nutritious; I checked several sites and I am fairly certain that this salad (before the split) contained less than 300 calories.

After we ate I had to do a lot of blowing. (<– and wasn’t even a first date; ba dum cha!)

The CF employees heard it was my birthday and sweetly brought me a sundae.

I made a wish, but passed the ice cream off to Adam. I had my eye on bigger and better things.

We split the Chocolate Coconut Cream Cheesecake four ways and were all swooning. I told you I hated cake.

Another birthday benefit is getting to set the day’s agenda, because I totally don’t wear the pants every other day of the week. Adam walked around the mall with me for hours, cashing in birthday coupons without a complaint. P.S. Sephora will give you free Philosophy birthday cake body wash – no purchase necessary! – if you create an account online.

Where else could we do a birthday dinner if not Wegman’s hot bar.

I served myself two kinds of Asian chicken, heavy on the veggies.

I kept dinner on the smaller side (about half the weight of usual) because we were heading to a movie and I was looking forward to this –

“This” is the container of pretzel bites I split with Adam and forgot to photograph until after the lights were turned down.

We saw “Friends with Benefits” and looooooved it. Mila Kunis is hot, Justin Timberlake is hilarious, and it was just raunchy enough to not be a total chick flick. I declared it my new favorite movie!

Let’s recap – freebies, coconut cream, mall-walking, Wegman’s, pretzels, and a movie. <– best birthday ever (until next year!)

23Jul2011

Teddy Bear Tie Dye

by Emily

My last day as a 25-year-old has been a good one; though after yoga our morning got off to an ironic and frustrating start. I heard a rumor about a Teddy Bear Picnic so I strapped my bears into the car and headed out.

Sidenote – I hate stuffed animals (always have) but I spotted this guy on sale my sophmore year in college and just had to buy him for Adam. The husband (who also hates stuffed animals) named him Rutherford and fell in love. Our obsession with bears has bloomed from there.

We did not develop an obsession with Old Falls Street today though, since after 20 fruitless minutes of searching we never located our picnic. Instead we drove back to the city to cash in a Living Social deal at Tea Leaf Cafe.

I’m so glad we were forced here instead; adorable set-up, cheap prices, and delicious food. We’ll be back soon.

Our deal was for two drinks and two small plates. Adam went with an avocado milk tea.

He doesn’t know the joy that is boba.

I, on the other hand, am obsessed with all things tapioca and requested extra bubbles in my taro milk tea.

It can’t quite compare to China Town in Boston where they mash real strawberries into your tea, but this was the best boba I’ve had in recent years! The tea wasn’t too sweet and the boba were the perfect texture.

Adam and I split the two side plates equally.

Chicken and fresh mushroom pan-seared dumplings.

Vegetarian shiitake spring rolls.

Again, the best version of these foods I’ve had since moving to Buffalo. Locals – get thee to Tea Leaf Cafe!

Rutherford was stuffed,

but Adam and I decided to round out our meal with some fruits and veggies.

Roasted mushroom, squash, and the world’s bitterist eggplant that I ate only because it was healthy,

blueberries, pineapple, strawberries, and watermelon so juicy I’d eat it even if I was stuffed.

I dropped my boys at home and then headed out to partay. My friend Mary-Kate actually had her birthday this week too and she hosted a tie dye fest. It was tons of fun but I wasn’t sure how the guests I didn’t know would feel about their photos on the internet so I don’t have any pictures. I will show you my shirt when it finishes drying tomorrow. And I will also show you the amazing rainbow cake that Emily made –

Eeek! I was seriously impressed. I don’t actually like the taste of cake that much though (no matter how cute it is) so I ate half of this piece plus a glass of Blueberry Lemonade Stoli and called it a day.

Adam and I took a walk down Elmwood and ran a few errands, and before I knew it dinner time had arrived. I can’t think of a more fitting way to end my 25th year than this –

See you from 26!

21Jul2011

Vacation At Home

by Emily

Some people find that having visitors is stressful, but I think it gives you a great opportunity to be a tourist in your own city. It does help that my visitors are my (funny, easy-going) parents and they pay for everything! When you have guests it’s like you get to take a vacation at home because they force you to view your city with fresh eyes.

Let me tell you though, vacationing at home can be exhausting! We’ve been falling into bed after 1 am every night and this post is two days in one because I just couldn’t make myself sit down at the computer before bed last night. Even with double content I’ve got to keep this quick because otherwise it’ll be another post-1 am bedtime and my parents leave early tomorrow.

Tuesday morning started with a very unvacation-like trip to the orthodontist. But then I took my parents to breakfast at Sweetness 7 Cafe.

S7C is a totally adorable coffee and crepes place; I plan on bringing a good book and camping out for the day eating crepes very soon.

I ordered an iced black tea,

and my parents and I split 2 crepes 3 ways.

Kiss Me I’m Irish – plain crepes with syrup and a cracked fried egg in the center.

Irish Blessing – caramelized fresh apples with melted brie.

Apparently we went Irish for breakfast, and the choice served us well. I don’t have much experience for comparison but these are the best crepes I’ve ever had; so eggy!

After breakfast we walked a third of the loop around Delaware Park so my parents could see the Buffalos.

I continued to get my sweat on by taking advantage of their hotel gym while they got ready for the day. 30 minutes on the elliptical at random level 6. It was amazing to have access to a tv at the gym, especially because I was the only one in there and I could control the remote.

Our next activity was a trip to the Albright Knox Gallery.

I wanted to snap a picture of practically everything, but I controlled myself and stuck to a few favorites.

The first day with a new set of retainers is always super painful so I went with a liquid lunch.

A Vega Vanilla-Almonde Shake and Go Smoothie packet that I grabbed from the co-op on a whim. The flavor was good but not great, and this didn’t do an awesome job of sating my hunger, but I was definitely pleased with this –

And it’s just as well that I was left a bit hungry, because my best meal of the year was coming for dinner. Don’t let the pictures fool you (why are restaurants always so darn dark?!), Scotch and Sirloin is basically a must-go! I never would have ventured there if it hadn’t been for Groupon, but I am so glad that I crossed my fingers and bought the deal.

Adam and I split a bowl of crab bisque to start.

I also got a plate from the salad bar.

Romaine with mushrooms, artichokes, cucumber and French dressing. Plus a slice of the best bread I’ve had since Great Harvest, super duper doughy.

For dinner my dad and I split the two best things on the menu: Fried shrimp,

and the double lobster tail with drawn butter.

Like butter dipped in butter! We were so impressed with this meal, I can’t even tell you. I ended up eating three fried shrimp,

most of one lobster tail,

and all of the veggies.

For dessert we ended up at a candy shop on Elmwood with an ice cream counter.

I went with Ciao Bella Gelato, a half scoop each of key lime pie and malted milk ball flavors.

Fashion note – How cute is the back of this shirt?!

I actually bought this years ago in college but it has a strange, unflattering band around the waist so I’d worn it maybe once or twice. I can’t believe it took me so long to think of pairing it with a high-waisted skirt.

We sat outside of The Spot to eat our ice cream and I also drank a small, non-fat, iced Chai.

– – – Insert time (not enough!) to sleep. – – –

I picked my parents up bright and early this morning for breakfast at Panos. I got the 2-2-2; french toast, sunny side up eggs, and hash browns.

I ended up eating one egg, 1 piece (1 half slice) of french toast, and all of my potatoes. The amount of leftover food was a little annoying considering I ate exactly the portion of the 1-1-1 – from the kids’ menu – that they wouldn’t let me order. However, after taking a bite of my dad’s blueberry pancakes I decided that Pano’s can do no wrong and a little wasted food isn’t a big deal.

Coffee #1 of the day was a tall iced coffee with skim milk from Starbucks.

Did I mention that I’m exhausted?

My parents are sleeping at our apartment tonight so I took advantage of their gym one last time before they checked out. 10 minutes of walking on the treadmill and 30 minutes on the elliptical. I also carried both of my parents’ suitcases up our three flights of stairs and I’d like to count that as strength training!

Our big activity for the last vacation day was a long walk down Elmwood. We stopped in to basically every store and I definitely discovered a few hidden gems.

Mid-afternoon we grabbed lunch from the Globe Market.

1/4 lb each peanut noodles and Thai vegetable salad.

Meh. It wasn’t terrible but I’m honestly not a big fan of Globe.

Whether due to hunger or exhaustion or increased physical activity, hunger hit me hard this afternoon. We ran a bunch of random errands and during that time Adam and I split some new flavors of candy,

and I drank a chocolate milk.

Dinner at Chester’s Cajun Grill was a meal Adam and I had been looking forward to ever since we tried the Smoked Bourbon Chicken Sandwich at the Taste of Buffalo. Of course we had to get the sandwich.

It wasn’t good!! I can’t even tell you how said this made us. It wasn’t terrible, but we could only rate it a 5/10 and the sandwich we tried at the festival was a 9.5/10. I ate most of my meal but only because I was hungry; even the fries were pretty tasteless.

Thank goodness we had good company. We ended our evening with a final trip to the Spot to sit and talk; we are going to miss my parents so much when they fly home tomorrow! Coffee #2 – a grande, iced Americano with skim milk and two sugars – was actually consumed at 11 pm so I could make it through this post.

And I’m done; phew!

14Jul2011

Tantrum Take Out

by Emily

This afternoon I microwaved two mini corn tortillas with 2 slices of sharp cheddar to make a quick quesadilla.

I also made a Coke float.

My decadent snack had just under 500 calories, perfect to make up for missing breakfast.

Plus, so tasty!

When Adam got home this evening we laid down on the bed so he could tel me about his day, and promptly fell asleep. I woke up disoriented with a headache to boot. I had a mini tantrum and our planned dinner got scrapped in favor of Chinese food.

I ordered a pint of vegetable Chow Fun,

and a pint of vegetarian General Tso’s chicken.

I hope they’re good!

What’s your go-to take out dinner when you’re having a tantrum?

14Jul2011

Tastes So Good Makes A Grown Man Cry

by Emily

It’s summer! I know that’s been official for a while, but the tasty produce available here has me absolutely convinced.

I know it’s late afternoon, and not morning, but my first meal of the day was not eaten until after 1pm because apparently I’m having a lazy day. I also know that it’s Thursday, not Wednesday. We got some news yesterday and I took the day off of blogging in lieu of family time. And speaking of family time, my parents are coming this weekend!

Ok, enough segues, lunch.

1.5 oz of Cabot 50% reduced white cheddar cheese and a schmear of Crofter’s grape fruit spread on sourdough. Jam and cheese make the perfect sandwich combo.

For dessert, a huge bowl of local cherries from the co-op.

As I said, summer is here!

12Jul2011

Yes, I Want Quesadillas

by Emily

Tonight’s dinner inspiration came from Katie at Yes, I Want Cake. Layered quesadillas.

YIWC also inspires me to poke holes in all our condoms but Adam says we should have jobs before we have our own adorable baby. I guess I’ll stick with copying dinner. Katie’s quesadillas were triple deckers but I went with two layers with extra cheese.

Here’s the breakdown of our ‘dillas –

Plus homemade guacamole.

We made the guac with mashed avocado, mayan onion, tomato, and salt and pepper; it was delicious. In fact the whole meal was great.

Thanks for the idea, Katie!

Earlier this afternoon, the husband made me a Coke float.

So good. The adorable glass is from the bar I worked at back home, complete with a drink recipe.

And now I’m actually heading out for another drink, this time coffee. My friend Katie (the one from last night, not the dinner inspiration with the adorable baby) is moving soon so I’m trying to see her as much as possible. We are meeting at the Spot before she leaves for a trip tomorrow.

1Jul2011

Grog Not Groggy

by Emily

After my run this morning I joined my parents for an hour and a half bike ride. I burnt the crap out of my forearms yesterday so I ended up biking in 85* weather in this –

Worth it. We rode all around the path and over some gorgeous bridges. I so wish I’d had my camera but I couldn’t figure out a place to put it.

We came home for a refreshing breakfast.

0% Plain Greek Gods Yogurt with a strawberry honey straw, blueberries, peach, and Great Harvest granola.

I have maybe a half serving of granola left and my heart is breaking.

Getting lunch was not my strong suit today and I will admit that I was a little cranky this afternoon. We did do some fun things though, like explore a neat farmer’s market.

I grabbed an iced coffee from a stand at the market.

But traded iced in for hot as soon as I saw this –

Grog style coffee?! With a little skim milk.

I swear it did taste like buttered rum!

We also traveled to the mecca.

I bought sushi (spicy and regular brown rice California rolls) for lunch but I only ate three pieces.

Yucky City, way too much (mushy) rice. If I had been closer to the store I would have returned it but I was eating on the car ride home.

I split these Sunkist gems with my dad for dessert.

Yum City.

My grumbling tummy was very happy when dinner was served.

Side salad with peas, radishes, spicy ranch, and dill cheese curds.

Corn on the cob so tasty it blew the corn I bought in Buffalo out of the water.

And quesadilla with sautéed onions and peppers, turkey sausage, shredded chicken, and colby and sharp cheddar cheese.

With a small turtle blizzard for dessert.

I’ve been pretty well fed this vacation. Nonetheless, I can’t wait to go home to my husband tomorrow and hear about his first week back at school!

1Jul2011

My Aching Ischium

by Emily

Ow!

I wish I could blog more about today but it’s after midnight and I am just so tired! Time to keep things cursory.

I started my morning with a version of my new favorite breakfast.

Great Harvest granola (essential!) with berries, 0% Plain Greek Gods Yogurt, and a blue raspberry honey stick.

Delicious, and totally fun looking.

Then my parents and I headed out for a 3 hour bike ride. Hence the aching sit-bones! My plan was to run but my leg is sore (from accelerating of all things) and I think I ended up getting a better workout anyways.

After our three hour ride a big lunch was key.

It doesn’t look like much but that’s a vegetarian rice bowl from the burrito place down the street. Rice, black beans, creamy hot sauce, tomatoes, corn salsa, guacamole, lettuce, cheese and pineapple.